EAST LANSING -- Aaron Burbridge says he can run the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds, and no, a second surgery to repair a torn meniscus won't change that.

"I don't think so," Burbridge said Tuesday.

It's speed and overall ability that Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio hopes Burbridge will bring to the table, as the Spartans have decided not to redshirt him despite missing time early and will let him compete for time in an unsettled receivers rotation.

Burbridge was ranked the state's top-ranked senior at Farmington Hills Harrison and enrolled at Michigan State only to hear a pop while running routes in his first week of preseason camp.

He knew the meniscus was torn again and worried the injury would force him to redshirt, but said he kept working and returned in 3 1/2 weeks after having his knee scoped when he had been expected to miss at least four.

With the opportunity to play presented to him, Burbridge had two receptions for 14 yards against Central Michigan on Saturday in his college debut. Against Notre Dame, he is listed on the depth chart at the "X" receiver behind starter Tony Lippett and Jeremy Langford.

"Our goal is to get to the Rose Bowl or the national championship," Burbridge said.

"I was ready to play. The pros outweighed the cons."

Dantonio has identified Burbridge among his top eight receivers he wants to battle for playing time.

"The thing about our wide receivers that I think everyone has to recognize is that we're young, relatively inexperienced, and so we got to play them to find out who is going to rise to the top, who are going to be the guys," he said.-- Download the "Michigan State football on MLive app" for your iPhone or Android and follow Diamond Leung and Josh Slagter on Twitter to keep up with news on Spartans football.